THE COPPER TRADE OF THE SINO-SOVIET BLOC IN 1955

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• Document Creation Date: December 23, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 23, 2013
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: October 21, 1957
• Content Type: REPORT

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SECRET
N9 59
ECONOMIC INTELLIGENCE REPORT
THE COPPER TRADE
OF THE SINO-SOVIET BLOC IN 1955
CIA/RR 110
21 October 1957
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND REPORTS
SECRET
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WARNING
This material contains information affecting
the National Defense of the United States
within the meaning of the espionage laws,
Title 18, USC, Secs. 793 and 794, the trans-
mission or revelation of which in any manner
to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
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ECONOMIC INTELLIGENCE REPORT
THE COPPER TRADE OF THE SINO-SOVIET BLOC IN 1955 ,
CIA/RR 110
(ORB Project 24.1971)
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Office of Research and Reports
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FOREWORD
Estimates of the amount of copper imported from the Free World by
the Sino-Soviet Bloc have been made periodically-by numerous intelli-
gence organizations of the US government) but because of differences
in the methodologies employed, the estimates have
varied widely. Such variations emphasize the need for a more therough
analysis of the imports of copper by the Sino-Soviet Bloc. This
report presents an analysis on the sub-
ject; and although this report has not been coordinated with other
agencies, the major conclusions have been approved by the Economic
Intelligence Committee.
A shorter report covering the trade in copper of the Sino-Soviet
Bloc in 1956, utilizing the methodology developed in this report, is
planned for a later publication. As long as trade in copper continues
to be of international concern, similar reports on the subject will
be published annually.
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CONTENTS
Page
Summary 1
I. Introduction 2
II. Imports from the Free World 4
A. Chronology of Controls 4
B. Volume of Imports 5
1. Decline in Total Imports 6
2. Shift in the Form of Imports 6
a. Reclassification of Wire 6
b. Other Forms of Control 7
8
10
C. Value of Imports
III. Intra-Bloc Trade
Appendix A. Methodology
Appendixes
11
Tables
1. Deficit in Copper of the Sino-Soviet Bloc,
1946-55
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2. Summary of the Volume of Imports of Copper from
the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc, 1954
and 1955
3. Summary of the Value of Imports of Copper from
the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc, 1954
and 1955
4. Volume of Imports of Copper from the
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc, 1954
5. Volume of Imports of Copper from the
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc) 1955
Free World
Free World
6. Value of Imports of Copper from the Free World
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc, 1954 and 1955
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(ORE Project 24.1971)
THE COPPER TRADE OF THE SINO-SOVIET BLOC IN 1955*
Summary
The production of copper in the Sino-Soviet Bloc has been
inadequate for many years. The Bloc has attempted to alleviate
this deficiency mainly by importing sizable quantities from the
Free World and also has made extensive use of substitute materials.
Moreover, the Bloc, particularly the USSR, has made significant
withdrawals from stockpiles in order to meet current needs.
In 1955, imports of copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet
Bloc totaled about 95,000 metric tons,** accounting for about 17 per-
cent of the new supply in the Bloc. The amount imported in 1955
represents a.decline of about 25 percent from the level of almost
125,000 tons imported in 1954. This decline reflected the increased
demands for copper by all industrialized nations at a time when
available supplies were reduced by strikes in the major copper pro-
ducing countries of the Free World. As a result, prices were raised
to the highest levels in history.
Coincident with the decline in the volume of imports of copper
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc was a shift in the form in which the copper
was imported. Whereas most of the imports of copper by the Bloc
before 1955 were refinery shapes, nearly 80 percent of the imports in
1955 were in the form of bare wire measuring 6 millimeters (mm) or
less in diameter. The shift to copper wire resulted largely from a
decision by COCOM (the Coordinating Committee on International Export
Controls) in mid-1954 to remove such copper from the list of items
to be embargoed to the Bloc but to maintain an embargo on shipments
of other forms of copper.***
* The estimates and conclusions contained in this report represent
the best judgment of ORB as of 1 September 1957.
** Tonnages are given in metric tons throughout this report.
*** For a description of the controls on trade between the Free World
and the Bloc, see II, p. 4, below.
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Most of the imports of copper by the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1955
were acquired in Free World markets at competitive prices. The
principal supplier was the UK, followed by West Germany and Japan.
The total value of the imports of copper by the Bloc in 1955 amounted
to about US $100 million.* Although the volume of imports of copper
in 1954 was considerably larger than in 1955, the value of such im-
ports was about the same in both years.
I. Introduction.
For the past decade the production of copper in the Sino-Soviet
Bloc has fallen short of demand. The deficit in copper of the Bloc
in 1946-55, which amounted to almost 900,000 tons over the 10-year
period, is shown in Table 1.
Table 1
Deficit in Copper of the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1946-55
aJ
Thousand Metric Tons
Year
Demand
Production
Deficit
1946
174
14-5
29
1947
'99
161
38
1948
256
208
48
1949
316
260
56
1950
371
286
85
1951
431
329
102
1952
482
374
108
1953
514
384
130
1954
563
432
131
1955
618
458
160
* Dollar values are given in US dollars throughout this report.
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The attempts of the Sino-Soviet Bloc to meet this deficit have
Included an extensive program of using substitute materials in many
applications, the withdrawal of significant quantities of copper
from stockpiles, and the importation of sizable quantities of copper
In a variety of forms from the Free World.
Over the past 10 years the Sino-Soviet Bloc has taken approximately
100,000 tons of copper out of stockpiles to meet current needs. 2/
These withdrawals are believed to have taken place mainly in the USSR,
which during World War II received large lend-lease shipments of copper,
primarily from the US. From mid-1941 until mid-1945, nearly 400,00o
tons of copper arrived in the USSR from the US alone. 3/ These ship-
ments are believed to have enabled the USSR to accumulate .a fairly
substantial stockpile of copper which has been used to reduce the gap
between production and demand.
Sufficient information is available to establish that the Sino-
Soviet Bloc has imported rather substantial quadtities of copper in
the past 10 years. For some of these years, information on the amounts
of copper imported by the Bloc is available in data on trade reported
by exporting countries of the Free World. For other years, data on
trade are inadequate as a measure of imports by the Bloc because of
international political and economic conditions which precluded the
complete reporting by most of the countries supplying copper to the
Bloc.
There are no reported data on trade in copper within the Bloc
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a few shipments of copper, the production 50X1
of copper, and the demand for various forms of copper within the Bloc,
as well as a few trade agreements between countries of the Bloc. This
information is too incomplete to make a firm estimate of the total
trade, but it does indicate a pattern of movement.
Although some information is available on the trade in copper of
the Sino-Soviet Bloc for each of the years since World War II, data
are sufficiently complete to warrant a detailed analysis for 1955
only. Wherever the data permit, comparisons have been made with 1954.
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II. Imports from the Free World.
A. Chronology of Controls.
Before December 1947 there were no controls on exports of
copper from countries of the Free World to the Sino-Soviet Bloc. In
December 1947 the US National Security Council decided that steps
should be taken to halt exports from the US to the Bloc of commodities
which were critically scarce in the US or which would contribute to
the military potential of the Bloc. To implement this decision, most
exports to the USSR and its European Satellites were placed under
mandatory licensing controls by the Department of Commerce in March
1948. At first the US attempted to obtain parallel action by other
countries of the Free World through bilateral negotiations, but by
mid-1949 it was realized that a multilateral approach to the problem
of controls was required. Consequently the representatives of several
Western European powers and of the US held informal meetings in the
latter half of 1949 as a Consultative Group (CG). By November_1949
the CG had been formed on a permanent basis with representatives of
Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the UK,
and the US. As a result of the meetings in November 1949, Inter-
national Lists* were drawn up, and extensive discussions followed
concerning the content of the lists, definitions of the items covered,
devices for controlling exports, and other problems connected with
the lists. In 1950 the CG established COCOM** as a permanent working
group of the CG in Paris. V
In August 1950, COCOM placed copper on IL-II under quanti-
tative control. In April 1951, all forms of copper, including ores
and concentrates, unwrought forms, and semifinished forms such as
* Items which are embargoed to the Soviet Bloc are on International
List I (IL-I); those subject to quantitative control, on International
List II (IL-II); and those subject to surveillance, on International
List III (IL-III). The items on IL-III are of strategic significance,
but information about the requirements of the Bloc for these items is in-
sufficient to establish the necessity for definitive control. Members
of COCOM are therefore required only to report their monthly export
statistics for items on Subsequent agreements embargoed the
export to Communist .China of items on all three lists as well as
various additional items.
** The members of COCOM are Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Greece,
Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netheelands, Norway, Portugal, Turkey,
the UK, the US, and West Germany.
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wire, were placed on IL-I for embargo. . Exports of all forms of
copper to the Sino-Soviet Bloc remained embargoed until mid-August
1954, at which time bare copper wire (subsequently defined as measur-
ing 6 mm or less in diameter) was reclassified from IL-I.to 2/
Exports of all forms of copper remained embargoed to Communist China.
These controls on exports of the various forms of copper continued
through 1955.
B. Volume of Imports.
A summary of imports of copper from the Free World by the Sino-
Soviet Bloc in 1954 and 1955 is shown in Table 2. Examination of this
table reveals that total imports in 1955 fell sharply from the level
of 1954 and that there was a pronounced difference in the form of cop-
per imported in each of the 2 years.
Table 2
Summary of the Volume of Imports of Copper
from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1954 and 1955
Thousand Metric Tons
Form of Copper
1954 El/
1955 12/
Wire and cable
Bare
27.3
74.3
Covered
20.5
9.7
Other
74.4
9.6
Unspecified
2.0
0.7
Total
124.2
24.3
a. Derived from Table 4, Appendix A, p. 17,
below.
b. Derived from Table 5, Appendix A, p. 18,
below.
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1. Decline in Total Imports.
The decline in imports of copper from the Free World by
the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1955 may have been due in part to the in-
adequate supply of copper and the increased demand for copper in the
Free World.
In the US and in Chile and later in Northern Rhodesia,
strikes in mines and refineries are estimated to have cost the world
about 115,000 tons of copper in 1954 and more than 130)000 tons in
1955. Y In 1954) the reserve stocks of copper in primary producing
countries had been almost exhausted. The production of refined copper
In the Free World amounted to about 3 million tons in 1954 and about
3.3 million tons in 1955. I/ In 1955, when supplies of copper were
reduced, demand was at an alltime high as industrial production in
the Free World reached record levels.
In the meantime the USSR was increasing its own pro-
duction of copper, which is estimated at 377,000 tons in 1955, an
increase of about 12 percent over the production in 1954 of 337,000
tons. ?./ Moreover, the demand for copper in the Sino-Soviet Bloc
may have been abated somewhat by the substitution of aluminum and
other materials for copper in many uses.
2. Shift in the Form of Imports.
Although the imports of all forms of copper from the
Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1955 declined from the level
of 1954, imports of bare wire increased significantly. In 1954,
bare wire represented about 22 percent of the imports of copper by
the Bloc, but in 1955 it represented almost 80 percent. It is
probable that this shift to wire resulted from the changes in COCOM
controls. The removal of the embargo on wire and the initiation of
controls on financial transactions and transshipments involving the
remaining forms of copper still under embargo almost surely were
decisive in changing the form of the copper imported by the Bloc.
a. Reclassification of Wire.
All forms of copper were subject to embargo by
members of COCOM before 16 August 1954, when 6-mm bare wire was
placed on IL-III for surveillance. Several reasons may be ad-
duced for the preference of the Sino-Soviet Bloc for copper in
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forms other than wire during the period when all forms of copper were
embargoed. First, the smelter and refinery products which made up the
bulk of the imports by the Bloc in this period are items of lower cost
than wire, which is a semimanufactured product. Second, because the
manufacture and distribution of wire involve additional firms and in-
dividuals in several countries, clandestine shipments of wire were
more likely to be detected by COCOM than were clandestine shipments
of primary forms. Finally, because of COCOM controls, the Bloc may
have been able to obtain copper more easily from countries not be-
longing to COCOM, and these countries mainly produced primary forms
of copper rather than wire.
The large increase in the imports of copper wire
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc after this wire was removed from IL-I also
was determined by considerations of price and of availability. The
Bloc was then able to go into the free market and purchase wire at
competitive prices, thus eliminating the cost of forged documents,
the .higher costs of transportation, the unnecessary middlemen who
were employed merely to complicate the tracing of the transaction,
and the other costs incident to clandestine procurement. Moreover,
a wider market was now available to the Bloc, and shipments of copper
became more regular, thus eliminating much of the uncertainty as to
supply.
b. Other Forms of Control.
Until 1955 the embargo imposed by COCOM on certain
exports to the Sino-Soviet Bloc did not prohibit the furnishing of
financial and forwarding services for these transactions. As a
result, firms and individuals in some of the countries belonging to
COCOM provided such services. In January 1955 the UK imposed con-
trols on transactions involving such financial services. The US
and Canada already had imposed similar controls, and other members
of COCOM stated that their existing exchange controls would be used
for this purpose.
Another weakness in the COCOM system was the lack
of controls on transshipments, which permitted a number of ship-
ments of embargoed copper to transit ports of countries belonging
to COCOM en route to the Bloc. In order to reduce this movement,
COCOM initiated the TAC (Transit Authorization Certificate) Scheme
in January 1955. The countries participating in this scheme were
required to issue transit certificates for all goods under embargo
transiting their ports en route to the Bloc.
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C. Value of Imports.
The dollar value of imports
the Sino-Soviet Bloc was about $100
shown in Table 3. Although imports
than in 1955, the average value was
of copper from the Free World by
million in both 1954 and 1955, as
of copper in 1954 were greater
lower.
Table 3
Summary of the Value of Imports of Copper
from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1954 and 1955
Million US $
Form of Copper
1954
195
Wire and cable
Bare
21
75
Covered
23
15
Other
59
10
Unspecified
2
1
Total
105
101
a. Derived from Table 6, Appendix A, p. 21,
below.
About 84 percent of the total volume of copper imported by
the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1955 was purchased through legitimate com-
mercial channels at competitive prices in many of the countries
producing wire in the Free World. Another 8 percent was purchased
from Finland at prices which were below those paid to other countries.
The remaining 8 percent; consisting of the basic forms which have
continued to be affected directly or indirectly by the embargo, was
acquired largely through clandestine means at premium prices.
Sufficient evidence is available to indicate that the Sino-
Soviet Bloc has been well aware of the situation regarding prices in
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the world copper market and has negotiated a large number of its
copper contracts on the basis of prices on the London Metal Exchange
(LME). This practice seems to have been general, regardless of the
origin of the material or the means by which it may have been pro-
cured. References to the negotiations for the purchase of bare wire
In countries of the Free World indicate that contracts were concluded
at the cash or settlement price* on the LME prevailing on the day of
sale, plus varying premium's.** Monthly average prices of standard
wirebars on the LME fluctuated erratically throughout 1955, althougb
there was a general upward trend in their movement from about $830
per ton in January to about $1,090 in December.*** Prices of bare
wire ranged from between $800 and $900 early in the year to as high
as $1,190 per ton at the end of the year.****
Purchases of other forms of copper, chiefly cathodes and wire-
bars, also generally were made on the basis of the price on the LNE
plus some premium. The premiums in these cases represented payments
for the concealment of the transactions. Payments for forged docu-
ments, extra costs of transportation, and profits for uneconomic
middlemen were included in these premiums. Except in the case of Fin-
land, data on the total value of copper other than wire which was
imported from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc are fragmentary.
The average unit value has been estimated at approximately $1,000 per
ton.
Because most of the copper imported from the Free World by
the Sino-Soviet Bloc moved by sea, the basis for almost all pur-
chases by the Bloc has been either f.o.b. a Western European port
or c.i.f. a European Satellite port. Material destined for a
European Satellite also may be sold c.i.f. a port outside the Bloc
The spread between the average cash price and the settlement
price on the LME is negligible.
The term premium refers to the relationship between the prices
of primary forms and wire. The price for wire apparently is deter-
mined by using the price of copper metal as a base and adding to it
a sum which reflects the value added by manufacture.
*** These prices have been based on the mean of the bid and asked
cash quotations per long ton at the close of the morning session of
the LME and converted at the rate of US $2.80 to UK g 1. 2/
xxxx The lower end of this range is below the average price of wire-
bars early in 1955 largely because the average value of the Finnish
exports was considerably below the average price in the Free World.
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and be forwarded overland by rail or by inland waterway at the buyer's
expense. The provisions of contracts for transactions involving Fin-
land are not known. Transportation services of both the Free World
and the Bloc are employed in the movement of such copper to the Bloc.
III. Intra-Bloc Trade.
The information available on trade in copper within the Sino-Soviet
Bloc suggests that copper follows the general movement of most other com-
modities within the Bloc. The less industrialized countries -- Albania,
Bulgaria, and Rumania -- export unrefined material to the USSR, Czecho-
slovakia, East Germany, and Hungary. Refined and semifinished copper
moves in the opposite direction, probably in_amounts roughly equivalent
to the copper content of the unrefined material originally shipped.
East Germany and Czechoslovakia import refined copper for the production
of machinery and equipment, part of which is exchanged for copper with
other Satellites and with the USSR. Since World War II, Communist
China, North Korea, and North Vietnam appear to have been importers
only.
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APPENDIX A
METHOEOLOGY
1. Derivation of Estimates.
a. Estimates for 1955.*
In the absence of official statistics from the Sino-Soviet
Bloc on its trade in copper,** the volume of such trade must be esti-
mated, partly from data on trade released by the exporting countries
of the Free World Such data 50X1
are usually fragmentary and often obscure. Information published by
the various exporting countries of the Free World lacks uniformity in
the classification of commodities, does not supply details on trans-
shipments, may be incomplete in describing shipments and their desti-
nations, and in some cases appears too late for use in current esti-
mates. 50X1
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* See Table 5, p. 18) below. Imports in 1954 have not been analyzed
In the same manner as those in 1955. Estimates of clandestine ship-
ments of copper to the Bloc in 1954 are those made in a US-UK con-
ference on the imports of copper by the Bloc, and most of the infor-
mation on all other exports of copper to the Bloc was derived from
reported data on trade. For a tabular presentation of these estimates,
see Table 4, p. 17, below.
** The release of Soviet statistics on nonferrous metals is punishable
under a decree of the Council of Ministers dated June 1947) which de-
clared such information to be a state secret. Other countries of the
Bloc have adopted the same policy, if not the same legal restrictions,
although there is an occasional exception, such as the release by the
Hungarians in their statistical handbook for 1955 of figures on the
production of aluminum. 12/
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no
reason to believe that the reported data on trade were unreliable,
and therefore these data were used in making the estimates included
in this report.
The copper imported by the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1955 can be
divided into three general categories: covered wire and cable,
bare wire and cable, and other forms of copper. The estimate of
the imports of covered wire and cable, representing about 10 percent
of the total, was derived from the reported data on trade. The
estimate of the imports of copper in forms other than wire and cable,
also representing about 10 percent of the total, was based on the
reported data on trade of certain countries not belonging to COCOM
The figure for the remaining 50 percent
of the total, that is, bare wire and cable, was derived from data
on trade reported by exporting countries of the Free World
Covered wire and cable, although frequently considered to
be an item of electrical equipment, was included in this report to
complete the coverage of the copper trade of the Sino-Soviet Bloc.
This practice generally has been followed by the intelligence com-
munity in estimating the imports of copper by the Bloc. 111
Inclusion of covered wire and cable in this report also prevents the
confusion which probably would result from having two different esti-
mates of imports of copper by the Bloc, one including and the other
excluding this category.
Because it was legal to export copper wire measuring 6 mm
or less to the Soviet Bloc in 1955, members of COCOM reported such
exports in their official statistics. Some countries not belong-
ing to COCOM also reported on copper exported to the Bloc. An
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analysis and evaluation of other information, however, indicated
that reported figures on trade were not complete. Data on trans-
shipments through the Netherlands) Belgium, and the port of Hamburg
were used to adjust the reported figures. Of the 85,000 tons of
copper other than covered wire and cable which the Bloc is estimated
to have imported in 1955, about 75,000 tons, or almost 90 percent,
were included in the adjusted reported data on trade.
About 80 percent of these exports of copper other than
covered wire and cable which appeared in reported data on trade, or
a little more than 60,000 tons, was reported by the exporting countries
of the Free World. The remaining 20 percent was derived from in-
formation on transshipments. The principal question to be answered
before using data on transshipment is whether the data refer to copper
reported by an exporting country and merely observed at a later point
in its voyage or to copper that did not appear in the statistics on
exports. In the first situation, data on transshipment would not be
added to reported figures; in the second, such data would be added.
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b. Value of Imports.**
The value of imports of copper from the Free World by the
Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1954 and 1955 is estimated at about $100 million
in each year. Because almost no information was available about the
price paid by the Bloc for these imports, indirect information was
used in deriving estimates. The value of most of the copper wire
and cable imported since mid-August 1954 was estimated on the basis
of information on export licenses granted by members of COCOM. The
prices paid for embargoed copper in 1954 and for most of the copper
in forms other than wire and cable in 1955 were estimated on the
basis of intelligence information. The average value of US exports
of covered wire and cable in 1955 was used in estimating the value
of such imports by the Bloc in 1955. Only in the case of Finnish
exports in 1955 were the reported values used.
* See Table 5, p. 18, below.
** See Table 6, p. 21, below.
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2. Tabular Summary of Estimates.
The estimates derived by the means just described are presented
in the tables which follow. The estimates of the volume of imports
of copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc in 1954 are
shown in Table 4*. The estimates of the volume of such imports in
1955 are shown in Table 5.** The estimates of the value of such
imports in 1954 and 1955 are shown in Table 6.***
* Table 4 follows on p. 17.
** Table 5 follows on p. 18.
*** Table 6 follows on p. 21.
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Table le.
Volume of Imports of Copper from the Fee World
by the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1954
Metric Tens
Form of Copper Amount
Wire and cable
Bare
From Finland
From other countries
Total
Covered
Total
Other
From Finland
From other countries
Total
Unspecified
Total
Grand total
5,327 !a./
22,009 bJ
27,336
2222222/
1,437 d/
73,000 2/
74,437
2 000 if
124,273
a. Sum of 1,311, u 986, and 280 Lj (these 3 figures represent
exports to the Bloc under Finnish tariff item 64-003, believed to be
bare wire); also 2,683, 11/ 62, /.and 5 12/ (these 3 figures re-
present exports to the Bloc under Finnish tariff item 64-oo6, princi-
pally uncoated copper cable).
b. Sum of 7,000, ag/ 5t3if00
21./ 493, 22 1,000, g3/ 788, 24/ 56, ?51
gy
262, 2_6/ 2, 1,193, 28 3, 2 175, 32/ 1,500, 3A/ 220, 2
572, 3,3/ 954, 14/ 653, 12/ 500, 3/ 4,985, 37/ 951, 1.1 and 3 7 32/.
C. This figure was derived by a complex methodology, based on many
sources, impractical to reproduce here. The methodology
for this estimate are available in CIA files.
d. Sum of 1,012 422/ and 301 W. (representing exports to the Bloc
under Finnish tariff item 64-001, unworked copper); also 120 42/ and
4 41/ (representing exports to the Bloc under Finnish tariff item
64-ooh, copper plates and sheets).
f. Rounded from the sum of 12, 42/ 17, 4.4/ 467, 47/ 622, 4Y 15, 49/
316 22/ and 582 J. The figure of 2,000 tons is tenuous because so
little is known about the copper which was allocated to the firms
under the Administration of Soviet Enterprises in Austria (USIA).
Some of this copper might have entered the Bloc in the form in which
it was imported by Austria or in fabricated form. There is some
evidence to suggest that the figure might be too by.
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Table 5
Volume of Imports of Copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc 2/*
1955
Metric Tons
Form of Copper
Country of Origin
USSR Poland
Czechoslovakia
Hungary
East
Germany
Rumania
Communist
China
Ubspeci-
fled
Total
Wire and cable
Bare
Total
Covered
Total
Other
Total
Unspecified
Total
Grand total11508
CODOM members
Belgium
Japan
Netherlands
UR
West Germany
Other
Subtotal
Other countries
Austria
Finland
Sweden
Other
Subtotal
Unspecified
countries
Subtotal
Austria
Finland
Other
3,800 h/ 495 2/
4,141 1/ o
484 h/ 1,024 V
21,113 a/ 1,729 22/
7,640J 1,3751/
o o
79,378 4,623
'.50W
4,614 y
402 &
978 3/
7101/
o
7,154
0
2,633 a/
3.00 2/
1,818 1/
855 zy
3ooS
2,746
0
497 h/
10o 2/
117 y
1,401 3/
o
2,115
00
401 1./
300 2/
00
798 ss/
o
1,499
1,40g 1/
0
1,0i 1221/
2 400
0
0
o
0
0
0
0
0
o
a
g
aizto I2/
o
?
99 S
22
0
_
9,799
4,745
13,686
2,410
27,955
13,779
300
62,875
0 60743/ 763 se/
4,703 iji -690 gg/ o
65 11/ 1,794 a 123 m/
51 11/ 935 S 735 22/
4 822 4 o26 1,621
0
o
383/
o
5.744
0
o
556m7
150 S
706
2,821
0
o
o
o
o
1,495
0
2 hij
o
o
2
2 402
1,370
5,395
2,579
1,871
11 215
201
44 2oo 8.850
8in
201
74 291
500Es. IV / 0
310 1,278
v_y/
198 4,133
1,008 3,432.
508 W
o
8a
2.,322
2
10,104
31 ta/
0
W3
1,201
o
344g
340In
51 = /
a2
o
0
43
2
1,542
N.A.
125 Ey
46 12/
III
o
.8.2.511
2,700
1,426
1,713
6,4433
Ma
M
94 296
212 eiala
14,613
2)2 als/,
7,245
Footnotes for Table 5 follow on p. 19.
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Table 5
Volume of Imports of Copper from the Free World by the Sino -Soviet Bloc
1955
(Continued)
al
a. Most of the figures in this table were derived by adding the tonnages reported in a large number of reports and are docu=ented in
the footnote. which follow. Sore of the figures vete derived by a couples rwthodologypi Iimpractical to re-
produce here. The methodology for all estL-vates not specifically documented are available in CIA files.
b. Sem of 2,, 2 100, pi 100, 5 200, 22/ 103, 0/ 250, 27/ 250, 0/ 300, 22/ and 500 ?:pi.
C. Sun of 25, 25,% to., 43/ 1/ ?1 50, of 78, 6A/ and we i7/.
d. Son of 50, 100, 100, 72/ 100, W and 1C0
e. Transshipped through the Netherlands.
f. Sun of 414, 7y. 150, rd 350, S 150,0 250, gi 150, /2/ 1,150, ?2/ 100, 8i/ Boo, L2/ 1,000, 13/ 5o, 82/i and 50 ?5/.
g. Transshipped through the Netherlands.
h. Sum of 370 87/ (transshipped through BL711=-Ineenbourg), 50 8_8/ and 77 82/.
I. Trensthipperthrough the Netherlands.
J. this =mint was reported by Japan as exported to Poland LV. It is believed, hoverer, that the figure represents shipnents of
500 tons E/ mixt 500 tons 2.3/ which vere purchased by the Polish fir= TRANSACTOR for Com:waist China. Accordingly, this tonnage has
been transferred from Poland to China.
k. pa or 195, 15, 25/ 100, 150, 27/ and 24 ,q/.
75, 12..../0 155, 121/ 129, pal 241.,._92/ Ce, 19y an
m. Sun of 295ICS and 107 1E/.
n. F92/
, ef
q. a= of 2,327, 111/ 1,011, 11.2./ 22, .1L-11/ 712, PLY 05, 112/ 2,323,11?./6. 2,350, LIE 2,440, 112/ 5,h6?, 111/ 1,638, av and
4,036 12_ a j.
r. 9.= of 65, 12_2( 9,_142/ 356, 12,11, __,508, o/ 593, 1.S6 and 193 i
s. St= of 1%), 1_2_0/ 254, 5!// llo, 1R/ 203, LW j2/.
t. Sum of 126, 133/ 633, 1 '132, 135,/ 399, 1.,/ 254, 1 203, 12?/ and 71 12/
u. 11.40/
v. St= of 1,301, Itil 153, LW 200, 143/.2,0971.1n/ 30,1.212./ 152,Lyii 82:63. ifil.] and 2,815 14?/.
v. Vest normal, reported exports to PSM of the ne
following tonges: 2, 14 03, 1.E/ 147, 1/1 250, 12/ 1,220, 111/ and 653 12/'
On the basis of a =plan methodology, impractical to reproduce here, It has been estimated that 1,003 of the 2,375 tons were shipped
to Coaminist China. Accordingly, the 1,CCO tons has been transferred from Poland to China.
_
100, 1 10021/ std 150 10/.
y. Sic of PO, 1 60, 160 50, 161 ,s/ 325, 12_53/ 1,_Cyl. and 229 10/-
s. Transshipped through the Netherlands. 1
as. Stai of 295, gi 500, 10/ 2, la/ and 1 Lpi.
bb. See footnote v, above.
cc. Sum of 200 (from Denmark) ay and 100 (trot Italy) !fl/-
dd. Sun of 168, 173/ 34, ln/ 100, 125/ 56, 172J5 218, UV end 31 172/. Reports for the earlier months of 1955 do not identify copper
wire as such. Copper in otter forms, however, Is Identified as cathodes, sheets, or stellar shapes. Therefore, when copper was
described only as copper In e. report which also contained copper described as cathodes or acme similar foes, It was seamed that the
undescribed copper was vire.
cc. Sum of 206, 172/ 159, gy 120, 33J 183, 312/ and 95 01/. (See comment In footnote dd, above.)
rr. gy
gg. Vinland reported 1,322 tons of bars and vire exported to Poland. 10/ A trade agreement with Poland called for delivery by Finland
in 1955 of about 930 tans each of electrolytic copper and copper semiproducts. 10.1 There were 650 tons of "copper bars and vire"
delivered in the first quarter or 1955. W No additional exports to Poland of this description or of wire alone were reported by
Finland. In view of the trade agree=ent and of the fact that no vire was reported and that exports of 227 MY, 227 1224 and 177 120/
tons of winters and bars were reported, it has been assumed that the 650 tons of 'copper bars and vire" were vire.
hh. 1 1
11. rushipped through the Netherlands. 1E/
J.I. Transshipped through the Netherlands. 121/
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Table 5
Volume of Imports of Copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1955
(Continued)
kit. Transshipped through the Netherlands. 194/
11. Transshipped through the Netherlands. 1
Transshipped through the Netherlands. 1
Transshipped from Mexico through the Netherlands. 197/
oo. Sum of 144 (from Switzerland) 198/ and 791 (from Mexico) 199/.
pp. Transshipped from Chile through the Netherlands. 200/
44. Transshipped from Egypt through the Netherlands. 201/
rr. 202
ss. 203/. During the first year of the reparations agreement between the USSR and Austria, 1,000 tons of rolled copper products were
delivered to the USSR by Austria. Because the first year ended 26 July 1956, it has been assumed that one-half of the copper was
shipped in the second half of 1955 and that one-half was shipped in the first half of 1956.
tt. Sum of 78, 204/ 202, 205/ 20, 2-06/ 168, 207/ and 40 208/.
uu. Sum of 382 209/ and 16 210/.
vv. Sum of 300 211/ and 10 212.
ww. Sum of 646 213/ and 632 214/. The figure 632 represents the difference between total Finnish exports of bars and wire to Poland,
amounting to 1,322 tons, 215/ and the amount estimated to have been wire (see footnote gg, above).
Sum of 25 216 and 100 JJ.2
yy. Sum of 1 21 and 45 21
zz. 220
aaa. Transshipped from Denmark through the Netherlands 221/
bbb. Transshipped from Algeria through the Netherlands. 222/
ccc. Transshipped from Finland through the Netherlands. 223/
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Table 6
Value of Imports of Copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc 2/
1954 and 1955
1954
1555
Volume Average Price Volume Average Price
(Thousand per Metric Ian Value 2/ (Thousand per Metric Ton Value b/
Form of Copper Metric TOnel OS $) (Million uS $) Metric Tons (US $) (Million US $)
Wire and cable
Pare
Prom COCOS members 63 5/ 1,034 W 65.1
Prom Austria 1 2/ 1,091 W 1.1
Prom Finland 5 2/ 792 fi 4.0
From other countries 5 2/ 1,034 al 5.2
Total or average j/ 7931/ 21.4 I/ II 1,019 D-21
Covered 21 W 1,081 22.7V 10 el 1,14811W 14.8
Other
Fro= Finland 2 2/ 867W 1.7
From other countries 8 Si 1.000 2/ 8.0
Total or average 7.I1 2/ 804 29-L5. 10 970 2.2.
Unspecified 2 9/ 804 L./ 1.6 1 2/ 1,000 2/ 1.0
Grand total or
average 124 848 uJ 1,0 D 10.ja
a. So= of the figures in this table were derived by a complex methodology, impractical
to reproduce here. The methodology I Tor all estimates not specifically doc=ented in footnotes are
available in CIA files. Totals are derived from unrounded figures, as shown in Table 4, p. 17, above, and
Table 5, P. 18, above, and, do not always apmee with the sums of the rounded components.
b. Volume times average price per ton-
e. See Table 5, p. 18, above.
d. This figure 'ma obtained by dividing $88,576,000 (the total dollar value of licenses issued ggt/ ) by 85,670,
the sum of the following traumata of copper wire (IL-3652) licensed for export to the Bloc by =embers of CM:
4,370; 201; 14,309; 400; 9,417; 2,243; and 54,731 0./. These figures include some ton/sages for which licenses
have been reissued, sone which are for re-export, end some which are for delivery in 1956. It is not believed,
however, that the figure for the avenge price is rendered invalid by these facts.
e. This figure was obtained by dividing 027,250 (the sum of $54,250, $515,000, and $358,000 226/) by 850
(the sum of the following tonnages of copper vire, licensed for shipment to the Bloc by Austria: 50, 500,
"1 310 gni).
f. The average value per ton of exports to the Bloc under Finnish tariff item 64-006 (Principally uncoated
copper cable).2S1/
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Table 6
Value of Imports of Copper from the Free World by the Sino-Soviet Bloc
1954 and 1955
(Continued)
g. Information on the value of the remaining wire from various origins was not available. This tonnage has
been valued at the same price per ton as the exports of members of COCOM (see footnote d, above).
h. See Table Is, p. 17, above. Of the 27, it is estimated that 10 were exported by 16 August 1954, the date
when COCOM removed the embargo on exports of copper wire to the Bloc. The 10 represents the suM of 7 229/ and
3 (Finnish exports of wire--see Table If, footnote a, p. 17, above--were prorated on the number of days in 1954
before and after 16 August. It was assumed that about 60 percent of the wire was exported before 16 August).
i. The average price after 16 August is estimated at $790, which represents the average value per ton of copper
vire licensed by members of COCOM during the period. The licenses covered 44,693 tons valued at $35.3
million. 230/
j. The value after 16 August was $13.4 million.
k. See Table Is, footnote c, p. 17, above.
1. This is a residual figure, representing the difference between the total value of copper of $105.2 million
(see footnote u, below) and the sum of all other values for copper imports in 1954.
m. This figure was derived by analogy with data on US. exports. In 1955, the US exported 18,125 tons of covered
wire and cable under Schedule B classification numbers 709810, 709830, 709855, 709860, 709865, 709870, 709875,
and 709885 231/ valued at about $26,895,000. 212/ The average value of these exports is $1,484 per ton, with
the average for individual categories ranging from $1,014 per ton (for 0.7 percent of the total) to $1,680 per
ton (for 13 percent of the total).
n. The average value per ton of exports to the Bloc under Finnish tariff items 64-001 (unworked copper),
64-003 ( copper bars and wire), and 64-004 (copper plates and sheets). The figure was obtained as follows:
Finnish exports to the Bloc were multiplied by the average value of exports under each tariff item to each
country of the bloc 233/ to yield a value for all tonnages. The total figure of $1,486,003 so obtained was
divided by 1,713, the tonnage of copper other than wire which Finland exported to the Bloc.
0. This figure was selected somewhat arbitrarisy as lying cetveen the average price on the London Metal
Exchange in 1955 of approximately $970 (average cash quotation converted to dollars at the rate of UK a 1 to
$2.80) and the average estimated value of bare wire and cable.
p. See Table Is, footnotes d and e, p. 17, above.
q.. See Table 4?footnote f, p. 17, above.
r. The value for unspecified forms was assumed to be the same as that for forms other than wire.
s. This figure was assigned arbitrarily but seems to be a fairly representative value, lying between that for
wire and that for other forms of copper.
t. The average price per ton of $848 for all copper in 1954 was derived from data in the table. /t was
assumed that the average price per ton of all copper except covered wire and cable bore the same relationship
to the average price of all copper in 1954 as in 1955. Three of the four components of this ratio were known;
the fourth was calculated to be $848.
u. This figure, which was derived by multiplying the total volume of 124,000 tons by $848 per ton, may be
slightly high. For example, in 1955 the average value of Finnish exports of copper to the Bloc is noticeably
below the average value of exports of copper to the Bloc from other countries of the Free World. The same
situation probably prevailed in 1954.
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